Western Car Shoppers More Likely to Consider Tesla

Tesla Motors’ electric cars might be rare sights on the road, but they are among consumers’ preferred vehicles in some parts of the U.S., according to a survey from Kelley Blue Book.

The research company released a report identifying the most-popular and least-popular automotive brands by region, based on information from more than 10 million users of its KBB.com website. Among the winners are Tesla, which car shoppers in the West are 85% more likely to consider than buyers in other regions, though it was far less popular among southern shoppers.

The brands’ scores measure relative popularity in different regions, not total sales compared with other brands.

Of all regions, shoppers in the South are influenced least by brand when shopping for a car as indicated by a relatively small 17% preference for Infiniti over compared with other brands. In contrast, Midwest shoppers are 64% more likely to consider Chrysler vehicles and Northeast shoppers are 56% more likely to consider Subaru.

Kelley said its research found the top brands among shoppers in certain regions often have factories or headquarters in the area, which suggests some shoppers are drawn to brands with local ties.

The charts below show how which brands fared best and worst among regions.

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